Capturing the Ocean's Wings
by The Jester Erebus
Summary: Elizabeth is held prisoner by the manipulative Cutler Beckett. Sometimes you have to make the hardest choices when protecting the ones you love. Beckabeth
1. Stormy Seas

**Well, I was going through some of my stuff, and I found this little story that I wrote sometime around the release of At World's End. So I figured I'd share it, instead of letting it collect dust.**

**Pairing: Beckabeth, with a little bit of Norribeth and Willabeth thrown into the mix.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own a thing, but wish I had a pirate ship ;)**

She woke up in a daze, her vision still foggy and wavering. Groaning, she reached a hand out to massage her temple, but was stopped by the rusty chains that held her wrists down. A slow, aching fear rose from the pit of her stomach. As calmly as she could, she surveyed her surroundings to get some idea as to where she was.

She was in a cell, cleaner than the others she had been in, but still, the smell of decay overpowered her. She shuddered at the sight of blood splattered on the wall closest to her and inched away until her back collided with something. She looked behind her. It was a pair of expensive looking boots. Boots were on feet, and feet were connected to a body. But whose body? She couldn't recall just yet...she snapped her head up to face her captor.

She looked up into the face of evil itself.

Lord Cutler Beckett smiled serenely down at her. "Miss Elizabeth Swann. Or, shall I say," he paused for emphasis, "Your Highness." He chuckled to himself as she stared up at him with a look of unabashed fury on her face. She averted her eyes and stared down at the ground, not uttering another word or whimper. He crouched down beside her and lifted her chin up roughly to face him. "You will look at me when I'm talking to you, girl. I believe I am the one who holds the power now." She recoiled from his touch, instinctively jerking herself away as his fingers made contact with her skin. He grabbed her chin and turned her face towards him so that she was staring straight into his eyes.

She met his gaze with pure loathing, trying to convey as much hate and anger as she possibly could into his electric blue eyes. He released her without a word and stood up.

"This cell is no place for a lady, my dear," he simpered as he drew himself up. "I have more...accommodating chambers awaiting you." He pulled a key out of his pocket and unlocked the chains. Elizabeth rubbed her sore wrists, and watched Beckett warily as he stepped out of the cell. He bowed and put an arm out before him, waiting for Elizabeth. She frowned, unsure if he was mocking her or simply being polite. She shook her head and stepped out of the cell in a regal manner, lifting her soiled skirt up above her knees and holding her head up as high as it could go.

Beckett stepped in front of her and she followed him up the stairs and to his office. Elizabeth stopped at the door, eying him warily.

"I can assure you that I won't bite, Miss Swann."

Once she was in, Beckett gestured to one of the chairs and she sat down, still staring at him defiantly. He took the seat across the table from her and poured a glass of brandy.

"Drink?"

Elizabeth shook her head. Beckett sipped at the brandy himself and watched as Elizabeth grabbed the entire bottle and started to gulp it down. He raised his eyebrows.

"Quite impressive, Miss Swann. But you now owe me a decanter of brandy."

Elizabeth wiped her mouth on her dirty sleeve and glared at him. "It's Highness to you, Beckett, and I believe that you owe me much more than just a bottle of brandy."

"Oh? And why is that?"

She leaned forward in her chair. "You murdered my father." Lowering her voice to a whisper, she continued. "You will die if I have to kill you myself."

Beckett stared at her for a moment before regaining his composure. He lifted his glass towards her and drained it before setting it down carefully on the table. "Come here, if you please, _your highness."_

He stood in front of the fireplace, silent and unmoving. She approached him and waited, the crackle of the flames breaking the silence. Beads of sweat formed on her brow as the fire rose steadily. He cleared his throat and poked a long rod in the fire.

"You are aware of the consequences of piracy, are you not, Miss Swann?" He lifted the rod out of the fire. She stepped back.

The brand.

He was going to brand her.

"No!"

In a flash he was on her, pinning her against the wall. She let out a scream and flung her arms at him, grabbing at whatever she could in a desperate attempt to free herself. He grabbed her arms roughly and put them above her head. Holding her with one arm, he used the other to rip down her dress so her left breast was half bare. She watched him as he paused, staring at her and breathing heavily.

She shook slightly in his arms despite her defiant glare. "Do what you want, then."

'_If Jack could do this, then so can I.'_

A single scream of pain penetrated the night.


	2. The Melody of Dreams

**Disclaimer: I'm poor, don't sue me, please! **

**I can't think of anything else of interest to put here, so onward with the story!**

_Barbossa, Jack, and Elizabeth walked down a sandy inlet together, with Jack the monkey resting on Barbossa's shoulder. In the distance, Elizabeth could see Davy Jones, his feet planted firmly in a bucket and his tentacles waving in the wind. Next to him she saw Cutler Beckett with a smug smile on his face, and Will. _Will. _Her heart thudded loudly in her chest at the sight of him._

"_Well," said Lord Beckett._

"_Well." Jack answered him, scratching his head. _

_Elizabeth stared at Will, her face as unrevealing as if it were wrought from stone, yet her eyes were clouded with sadness. Will looked down quickly._

_Davy Jones looked from Will to Elizabeth and bared his teeth menacingly. "Love," he muttered, thinking he went on unheard but earning glares from Barbossa, Will, Jack, and Elizabeth and an amused glance from Beckett._

……………………………………………..

"_It's a trade then. Jack for Will."_

_Jack looked around and smiled nervously. Will walked over to stand next to Elizabeth and pushed Jack over to the other side. _

"_No." It was Beckett. "I want the girl."_

_Everyone else, including Davy Jones, stared at him in shock. Then the uproar began._

"_NO! JACK SPARROW OWES ME! HE COMES WITH US!" _

"_You are NOT to involve Elizabeth," Will hissed at Beckett with as much venom in his voice to kill five cattle right on the spot. Jack shook his head. _

_Barbossa raised an eyebrow. "Why do ye want to involve the woman, Lord Beckett?"_

"_She is the Pirate King! Of course he wants to involve her!"_

_Everyone stopped yelling and turned to face Jack, who now cowered behind an annoyed Barbossa._

"_Pirate King, eh?" Beckett stroked his chin thoughtfully. Will stared at Elizabeth in astonishment. Elizabeth nodded and raised her head regally. _

"_I am King of the Pirates."_

"_Then we reach an agreement? Will for Lizzie?" Jack inquired, his eyes darting around wildly from side to side. Barbossa nodded._

"_That be the agreement fer now. We'll come back fer you, Your Highness."_

_Elizabeth said nothing. Grasping Will's hand desperately, she pulled him towards her and kissed him fiercely, the fire of passion searing their hearts together for one brief moment in time. She pulled away panting, still grasping his hand firmly._

"_I love you, Will."_

_Will whispered the words back to her as pulled away from her and she fell into oblivion._

…………………………………..

The mark that Beckett left upon her breast was prevalent on her tanned skin, the 'P' shiny and raw. It was just one more scar of many to her now, and she wore them all proudly. They were proof of all the hardships she had endured, proof that she was no delicate female, but indeed a notorious pirate. Notorious or not, however, her eyelids drooped and she yawned loudly. In a matter of mere seconds she was on the floor by Beckett's desk, sound asleep.

………………………………….

Beckett sighed and gestured to one of the men outside of the door to move her to more comfortable quarters. His fingers itched to wrap themselves around her slender neck, to hear her scream and beg. But she would never beg. The girl was too proud, too cunning, and too strong. She had been through hell and heartache, and she was able to withstand more than most men could.

So many people bowed before him. He held the world in the palm of his hands and he could crush anything or anyone that got in his way. Yet this woman would not waver so easily. He poured himself another cup of hot, steaming tea and sipped at it. He would have his way in the end.

………………………………………………………

Elizabeth tossed and turned, her feet tangled up in...sheets? She sat up with a start. The room she was in and all of its belongings were completely foreign to her.

She scanned the room, trying to recall anything, but the very last thing she could remember was Beckett branding her. She winced, touching the mark lightly. She could still feel the scalding metal searing itself to her flesh, the skin seeming to melt off of her very bones.

She was in Beckett's room then. Her heart thudded loudly in her chest as she made this assumption, but instead found another figure standing in the farthest corner of the room. "No, it can't be!"

_James._

"James!" Her eyes brimming with unshed tears she ran over to him and embraced him fully, patting him to make sure he was really there. "But you're dead! I saw it myself!"

James smiled and looked down at Elizabeth's hands, which were currently lying on his chest. She noticed and removed them, her face turning a rather bright shade of tomato red.

"I was enjoying that," James protested, and Elizabeth chuckled weakly. "I have something for you." He reached into his coat and brought out a gold pocket watch. "It belonged to my late father. He gave it to me when I was a little boy the day before he was killed."

"Murdered?" Elizabeth gasped softly.

James nodded. "By pirates. I knew from that day forward I would set upon delivering justice to the men who had robbed me of my childhood. I was wrong. I know that now." He reached over and lightly touched the side of her face. "You are indeed the _best_ pirate I have ever heard of."

Elizabeth chuckled. "You weren't such a bad pirate yourself."

James took her hand and opened it, placing the pocket watch in her palm. "I want you to have this. Let it be a token of my love."

Elizabeth started, her mouth open slightly, lost for words. Finally she closed her hand around the watch and nodded. "I will keep it with me. I will not forget its meaning."

"Glad to hear it!" James' face lit up with a smile, his eyes sparkling brightly. Suddenly he looked behind him as if someone else were there. "I must be going now, Elizabeth. I will always be here with you. Know that." He turned back, his face once again somber, a mask concealing his true feelings. He stared at her for a moment and the mask fell away again, as if her very presence had melted it away into nothing. He leaned in closer, his eyes burning with desire. "I love you." He captured her lips with his, and she wrapped her arms around the back of his neck, deepening the kiss. He gently moved his lips against hers as if he were savoring her. All of the feelings he had hidden from the world was in that kiss. It was passion, and fire, and yet there was a certain tenderness to it at the same time.

They broke away gently, less suddenly then the first time he kissed her on the Flying Dutchman. But it meant the same thing. He would be gone again as easily as a feather floating in the ocean breeze.

"Goodbye," he whispered. He opened the window and climbed on the sill, throwing one last look to her before he was gone. Elizabeth raced over to the window and looked down. There was nothing but endless miles of ocean. The sea was calm and gently lapping up against the sides of the ship. She closed the window and climbed back in bed, salty tears trickling down her cheeks like sea spray.


	3. The Darkness Always Follows

**Hello all! (Grins sheepishly). I know it's been quite a while since my last update, but I've had a LOT of college work. I rewrote this chapter a few times (since I wrote this a while ago, there was a lot that I wanted to change, and I changed a lot). This chapter is short, but I will have the next one up soon! Really! I promise! Thank you so much for your wonderful reviews, they made me very happy! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own a thing!**

**Did you all hear that Johnny Depp signed on to do Pirates 4? I'm really excited, but there won't be any Orlando or Keira! (Or Tom Hollander or Jack Davenport. I mean, we all knew that, but still, one can hope!)**

Elizabeth awoke to the tinkling of a spoon hitting china. She sat up abruptly and stared as Lord Beckett observed her calmly, sipping at his tea on the side of the bed. She touched her forehead lightly and opened her hand as a pocket watch fell out of it. She grasped it tightly and scrutinized the object. It was gold, elegant and simple, save for the initials J.N carved on the front. Her belly flopped with delight. So it wasn't a dream, after all. Beckett still stared at her unabashed, even as she glared at him from the bed.

"Can't a lady sleep in peace anymore? What's become of gentlemen these days?"

Beckett chuckled softly under his breath. Setting the tea down on the nearest tabletop, he faced her, an amused smirk on his face. "And since all of your gentlemen friends are pirates, I can see that they all act like fine civilized gentlemen most of the time."

Elizabeth leaned forward, ripping the sheets off of her body. "Do not mock me. I may be your prisoner for now, but I will find a way to dispatch of you. You can rely on that."

Beckett snorted. "Prisoner? Who said anything about being prisoner?"

Elizabeth blinked. "You mean I can leave?"

"I didn't say you could leave. Not yet. You are a pirate, and I have obligations to the crown and my country to dispatch of pirates."

"You are a murderer," Elizabeth spat, hatred burning fiercely in her eyes. Beckett smiled serenely.

"But Miss Swann, you of all people should know that it's just good business. A ruler must make sacrifices."

He walked over to her side of the bed and sat down, his fingers dancing lightly on her skin. She hissed and threw her fist at his face but he caught it before it collided with his immaculate features.

"Ah ah ah, Your Highness. I do believe that this sort of violent behavior will get you punished." He grabbed her arm and, prying her hand open, took the watch and examined it. "James Norrington? How did you come to obtain this?"

"I've had it for a long-"

Beckett forced her up and stared into her eyes, his face inched from hers. "Don't lie to me." He said the words casually enough, yet there was venom that lurked behind them that bit at her.

Elizabeth met his gaze, as unwavering and insolent as she could be. He finally looked away, and Elizabeth hastily stuffed the watch in her jacket pocket.

"I'll be willing to let you go, Miss Swann, if you will do everything I say. Obey me."

She shivered, his foreboding words chilling her to the bone.

She lifted her head up. "What makes you think I will cooperate?"

"You will, or one of your friends will die." He walked over to the door, and opening it, signaled to one of the guards outside. She heard a rattle of chains and Will was dragged in.

Her heart leapt with joy as soon as she saw him. The joy was clouded over soon enough as she foresaw his death, a sword running through his heart, or his neck cracking as he hung from a rope on the ship.

"Will!" She ran over to him, tears streaming down her mud streaked face. His dark eyes were dark and stormy, yet hard as stone. What could he be thinking, with her in Beckett's chambers?

He was taken from her as soon as he was given back to her, like water running through open fingers. He was dragged away without protest, except for Elizabeth's sorrowful cries ringing through the ship.

Beckett gestured to one of the other guards. "Take Miss Swann to the brig as well, but keep them separated." He leaned forward, his breath gently tickling her lips. She froze, her body becoming intently aware of how close he was to her. "That is what you get for lying to me, Elizabeth," he whispered, his voice a ghost in the wind.

…………………………………………………..

He watched them pull her away to the brig again, and he picked up his tea and sipped it. The shrew was a strong one, indeed. Her spirit would prove most difficult to break. But he _would _be the one to tame her in the end.

………………………………………………….

When Elizabeth woke up from her restless sleep in the brig, she at once realized that she was not alone. Lord Beckett sat on a mahogany chair that his servants must have carried down to her cell, in his hands a cup. Elizabeth's uncannily keen nose detected with surprise that the cup contained gin this time instead of tea. She straightened up from resting on the grimy wall and stared at Beckett menacingly.

"Are you going to unlock these ridiculous chains and let me go? I see no advantage of you keeping me here."

Beckett smiled serenely and tipped his cup at her. "There are a few advantages I can think of, I'm sure."

"Such as?"

Beckett smirked in his gin and stood up. "You know, I _could _let you go free, Your Highness."

"But what's the catch?" she snapped, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. They widened in shock as Beckett set his tea cup down on the chair and got down on his knees. Trapping her between his body and the wall, he looked down at her face and stroked her chin lightly with one finger. She jerked away, scuttling like a crab to the side as far as her chains would let her, but her back hit the corner of the brig with a smack.

Not ready to resign herself to her fate, she struggled with her chains until he grabbed her and pulled her up to him. She expected him to kiss her violently, to press every inch of himself into her slender form. Instead he gently captured her lips with his own, moving against her like waves lapping along sea shore. Oh, no, no, this wasn't right, he wasn't Will…She bit as hard as she could, and he released her, wiping his bleeding lips on his crisp white shirt. Elizabeth hissed at him angrily, like an angry tigress that needed to be tamed.

"If you touch me again, they'll be finding pieces of you strewn across the ocean."

Beckett chuckled, the sound rumbling deep in his throat.

"No one is on the ship. They are all on the island fighting your so called 'army of pirates.' No one will come for you. Besides," he continued, pulling his shirt sleeves down slightly to cover his wrists, "I find it extremely distasteful for any man to force himself on a helpless woman."

"Then what was that you just did, my Lord?" She spat his title out as if to hit him in the face with the poison of her words.

"You, my dear, are not helpless."

She braced herself for an attack, but it didn't come. Instead Beckett sat on the chair in front of her, regarding her earnestly. "You do remember that I hold your beloved Mr. Turner captive? I could easily dispose of him right now if you do not comply." He leaned forward so that his lips were next her ear. "I prefer bargaining much better, don't you, Miss Swann?"

She shivered and nodded, her head dropping down slightly. "If...I do agree. You must free William and myself."

Beckett smiled. "Agreed."

"And you cannot back out of it."

"Elizabeth, I am not the kind of man who backs out of agreements." Unless it did not benefit him, of course.

Her head snapped up. "It's Your Highness or Miss Swann to you."

He stood up, towering above her form that was curled up in the corner. "You're not in much of a position to argue, Elizabeth." He crouched down beside her and held her shackled wrists up, stroking the chaffed skin underneath. She shuddered and went limp, her head leaning against the wall and eyes boring holes in the ceiling. His hands moved up her arms and neck, and he leaned forward, stroking the soft flesh of her neck.

She let out a strangled breath as her skin tingled with the contact, and subconsciously leaned into his touch.

As soon as she did, he backed away with a disgusted snort.

"_This _is the infamous Elizabeth Swann? A girl who succumbs so willingly to the sins of the flesh?"

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open, and she tried to quickly school her features to hide her shock. "I thought we had an agreement!"

Beckett sneered at her. "Do you honestly believe that I would ever bed a pirate whore?"

Elizabeth jerked back as if slapped, and Beckett drained his cup in one swallow. He stood above her, a smirk still prevalent on his perfectly sculpted features.

"Goodnight, Miss Swann," he said in a mocking tone, before stepping out of the cell and slamming the gate behind him.

**To be continued soon, I promise! School is insane, and work is as busy as ever, so patience, my dear readers. I know which direction I want the story to go now, and the next chapter is going to have a few twists.**


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